Google Is Working On A New OS Called Fuchsia

Google is apparently working on a new operating system called Fuchsia. The OS has been building up as a pile of code on Google’s own depository as well as GitHub. Reports say that Fuchsia will be used to unify Google’s two other operating systems, a rumour that had surfaced last year. Fuchsia could also be used to tie-in to the Internet Of Things revolution that has the self driving car at its forefront.

Google has built all of its operating systems on the Linux Kernel. Fuchsia however, is different. It’s built on a “Medium Sized Micro Kernel” called Magenta which itself is based upon Little Kernel, a program designed to run embedded systems. These are devices or computers that have specific functions and don’t necessarily need an OS to function (like digital watches).

Fuchsia’s main target, according to Google itself, is modern phones and personal computers that use non trivial amounts of RAM and fast processors. But it’s more than that. The operating system can actually be used as the basis for the Internet Of Things program that Google is pitching. It already has Brillo, the IoT program that it unveiled at CES this year. This ties in to the self driving car that Google has been testing for years. Since the program also has support for graphics rendering, it means that augmented reality could make it in to the mix. Building a whole new OS to deal with this is the right approach since the Internet Of Things is a concept that would mean infinite feedback loops from the surroundings. It would be the closest thing to the functioning human brain at that size that the human race would’ve ever built.

However, Judith Hurwitz, an analysts from Hurwitz & Associates has stated that she thinks this is nothing but an experiment. She believes this is just the run of the mill test drive for new technologies and isn’t tied to a specific product. Google is known to experiment with a ton of ideas including outlandish plans to provide internet access worldwide via hot air balloons.

Of course all this is just speculation since the only description that exists for Fuchsia is, “Pink + Purple == Fuchsia (a new Operating System)”.

The proposed use of the OS to unify Chrome OS and Android is most fruitful and would put Google in the big leagues in terms of OS. Though Google’s Android OS has the top spot among smartphone users, it lacks the permeability within the PC world. And since Apple and Microsoft have begun unifying their systems it only makes sense for Google to do so. It’ll make the relationship between its smartphones and the PCs much more natural.

Fuchsia has already entered the testing phase. Brian Swetland, one of the developers for Fuchsia, says that the OS has already started working on small form factor Intel PCs and an Acer Alpha 12 laptop. They’ll also have support for Raspberry Pi 3 soon enough.

The Fuchsia OS is open source and is scheduled to be released in 2017.